IN a sharp rebuke to the extreme right, French voters returned President Jacques Chirac to power yesterday in a landslide victory over Jean-Marie Le Pen.

The result ended a dramatic presidential race that brought citizens into the streets and shook France to its foundations.

The conservative Mr Chirac was re-elected by the highest margin in the history of France's 44-year-old Fifth Republic.

But the win, though huge, was less of a ringing endorsement of Mr Chirac than a ringing rejection of Mr Le Pen, joined by all of France's major political forces.

With 96pc of the national vote counted, Interior Ministry figures gave Mr Chirac 81.9pc of the vote, and Mr Le Pen 18.1pc.

Just two weeks ago, Mr Chirac had scored just below 20pc in the first round of voting - the lowest score for an incumbent president.

His victory was fuelled by a larger turnout than for the April 21 first round, when 28pc of voters stayed at home. Turnout yesterday was estimated at 80pc.

In victory remarks, Mr Chirac acknowledged that he had been re-elected in part by left-leaning voters who normally would not have chosen him, but did so to block Mr Le Pen, a fixture on the fringes of French politics who is widely viewed as racist and anti-Semitic.

"You took your decision in full reflection, going beyond the traditional divisions," he told voters, "and for some among you, going above and beyond your personal or political preferences."

"We have gone through a time of serious anxiety for the country," Mr Chirac said. "But tonight, in a great spirit, France has reaffirmed its attachment to values of the Republic."

Later, under driving rain, Mr Chirac greeted a few thousand supporters at Paris's Place de la Republique, where earlier, supporters had danced for joy when the results popped up on a huge TV screen.

He told them France had "refused to cede to the temptation of intolerance and demagoguery".

He also promised to immediately address the issue of rising crime - a top voter concern.

Mr Le Pen, from his headquarters near Paris, called the result "a stinging defeat for hope in France".

Mr Chirac's win, he said, was an "equivocal victory gained by the

Soviet method, with the co-ordination of all the social, political, economic, media forces".

Le Pen, 73, silver-haired and theatrical, who famously once called Nazi gas chambers "a detail" of World War II history, scored better than the 16.9pc he got in the first round, but much worse than the 30pc he had hoped for.

His weak showing meant it was less likely that his National Front could cause problems in next month's all-important legislative elections, which decide the prime minister and the shape of the government.

In past presidential elections, Mr Le Pen has scored an average of 15pc.

Mr Chirac, 69, whose murkilydefined campaign was transformed into a crusade against the far right, now faces the challenges of a relatively-weak mandate, the need to answer-obvious domestic discontent, and the task of repairing France's damaged international reputation.

Even with a Chirac victory, France's international stature has suffered, particularly within the European Union, said analyst Dominique Moisi.

The election "will leave a deep mark and will probably accelerate the tendency for France to have less weight in Europe compared to Britain or Germany," he said.

In Brussels, European Commission President Romano Prodi lauded the French for Le Pen.

"The extremist, isolationist policies of Jean-Marie Le Pen have been rejected and crushed," President Prodi said. "The French people have once again demonstrated that their nation belongs to the heart of Europe." BNP pressconference

THREE newly-elected councillors from the British National Party yesterday staged their first news conference since being elected in Burnley three days ago.

Following a rendezvous in a car park outside town, around a dozen journalists were driven to a piece of wasteland to speak to David Edwards, Carol Hughes and Terry Grogan about their victory and policies.

As party leader Nick Griffin watched, all three councillors refused to speak specifically about what they hoped to do while sitting on the council.

"What exactly can we do, being a minority on the council?" said Mr Edwards.

"We have got a foothold. "I am going to respond to local views of people. Take it day by day and hopefully just keep going - get our heads down and get going."

Asked what he planned to do for Burnley, Mr Grogan, who has been elected into office for one year, said, " Obviously it's very difficult.

"We are only three on a council of 45 who probably will not listen to anything we suggest."

Pointing to the surrounding rows of derelict houses, the 43-year-old added, "But at least now the people of Burnley who have been complaining about fairer funds for different areas, they have now got a voice."

Watched from a distance by mounted police called for by local organiser Simon Bennett, all three reiterated they were not Nazis.

"I'm not a racist," said Mr Grogan, who said he worked as a production manager at a Burnley plastics firm. "I've got Asian friends."

"I train and work with ethnic minorities," said Miss Hughes, 44, who will also spend a year in office.

David Edwards, a 40-year-old surveyor, said, "We have got people here and they are British. They will get my help."

Each added they had no policy to repatriate ethnic minorities in Burnley but added that "if they want to go back" then his party would help them.